Water vortex hydropower technology: a state‑of‑the‑art review of developmental trends
Fig. 7  Analytical representation of the free-surface and the tangential velocity profiles on the vortex hydropower plant with and without an
impeller
vortex core (Eq. 6 or 8) and the velocity of the blade and could
be estimated using a combined vortex model such as Rankine
(1872), Odgaard (1986) or Vatistas et al. (1991). Thus, the
efficiency of the turbine can be determined by:
( )
Pout vi − vb r𝜔
𝜑v = = (14)
P gH
Thus the turbine efficiency is highly dependent on the
operational speed of the impeller. Mulligan and Casserly
(2010) propose that the maximum efficiency should be
obtained when the impeller speed is maintained at half of
the vortex core speed.
Past studies on the GWVHP
Experimental studies
The first published experimental studies undertaken on the
vortex chamber for hydropower generation were by Mul-
ligan and Casserly (2010), Mulligan and Hull (2011), Mul-
ligan et al. (2012). In these studies, Froude similitude was
adopted due to the free-surface gravity-dominated condi-
tions generated in the vortex chamber. In this experimen-
tal campaign, the authors studied the effect of the shape of
the vortex chamber and varied the exit hole diameter (d)
using a ratio d/D where D was the diameter of the vortex
chamber. They concluded that optimum vortex strength
occurred when 14% ≤ d/D ≤ 18%. They also concluded that
the lower range and higher range of d/D correspond to low
and high head sites, respectively. Within these studies also,
the authors found that the vortex core lacks verticality in the
cylindrical vortex chamber due to the asymmetric tangen-
tial velocity conditions generated as a result of the inlet. To
resolve this, the authors suggested that a logarithmic spiral
chamber wall was necessary for the velocity field to transi-
tion to an asymmetric distribution from the inlet. Using a
spiral vortex chamber, the authors validated the analytical
equations available to estimate the pressure distribution in a
free-surface vortex in the absence of a turbine impeller. Fur-
ther studies were carried out by the authors, however, in the
context of subcritical vortex chambers in vortex drop shafts.
However, the results of these studies can still be adapted for
application in the water vortex hydropower plant.
Bajracharya and Chaulagai (2012) later undertook studies
on a vortex chamber where the invert level of the approach
flow channel is higher than the invert level of the vortex
chamber base. With the development of simple slider mecha-
nisms, it was seen that the vortex structure was continuous
from the inlet to the vortex chamber to the exit hole. As the
orifice of these geometries was increased, it was found that
the system was unable to maintain a stable vortex and thus
a high discharge was required. Dhakal et al. (2013) sub-
sequently developed an impulse type runner and modified
Bajracharya and Chaulagai (2012) design into a novel coni-
cal basin. The runner used in the study was an impulse type
formulated using the theory of cross-flow turbines (Dhakal
13

et al. 2013). In the study, vortex strength (circulation) was
measured experimentally for the Bajracharya and Chaulagai
(2012) type basin and the newly proposed conical basin. The
results showed that a higher circulation could be obtained in
the conical basin. Similarly, power generation efficiency was
found to be higher in the conical basin for the same flow con-
ditions tested in the Bajracharya and Chaulagai (2012) basin.
Further studies on the impeller used revealed that there was
a significant distortion of vortex flow when a large number
of blades was used (Dhakal et al. 2013). In the study, similar
blade profiles were used to develop impellers with 3, 6 and
12 number of blades with the same outer radius. Measure-
ment of output power by torque and impeller speed measure-
ment shows that with higher number of blades, the power
production decreases.
Sritram et al. (2015) experimentally studied the effect
of differing turbine materials such as steel and aluminum.
In this study, it was found that lighter materials such as
aluminum used in the impulse type runner were capable
of withstanding the flow conditions and resulted in higher
efficiencies due to the reduction of turbine self-weight.
The increase in efficiency was through an increased torque
production without a change in the angular velocity. Rah-
man et al. (2016) experimentally tested vortex profiles for
three different hydraulic head configuration and hydraulic
efficiency of four different turbine configurations in those
three basins. The result showed that higher rotational speed
of the runner does not necessarily mean higher hydraulic
efficiency. Similar to as defined in Mulligan and Casserly
(2010), the maximum efficiency was found when the rota-
tional speed of the turbine was half the tangential velocity
of the vortex. The research indicates that highest hydraulic
efficiency was found with the turbine having a minimum
number of blades. However, the authors do not provide
full information regarding the basin diameter and method
applied for prediction of the theoretical vortex profile.
Wichian and Suntivarakorn (2016) studied the effect of
turbine baffle plates on the efficiency. The impeller consisted
of five blades positioned uniformly around the circumfer-
ence with baffle plates added at the top and bottom of the
blade. Five different models having different baffle plate
area were investigated. The developed runners were tested
at three different flow rates. The study showed that a turbine
with baffle plates yielded a higher efficiency to those without
baffle plates. An impeller with 50% baffle plates was found
to be the most efficient, whereas a further increase in the
number of plates reduces the torque.
Power et al. 2016 conducted an experimental parametric
study to better understand the various operating conditions
of the GWVHP. Varying several design parameters, the vor-
tex height, rotational speed of the impeller and the braking
force were measured. The calculation of output power is
then done using Eq. 13, input power by Eq. 12, and finally
13
A. B. Timilsina et al.
efficiency is evaluated using Eq. 14. Among the five param-
eters that were considered for investigation, the ones related
to impeller are the blade size and the blade number. It was
seen that the height of vortex decreases with an increase in
blade size but the braking force increases (due to increased
impeller weight hence the inertia) rendering the increase in
power output thus the efficiency. A similar result was seen
with increased blade number as it contributes to the weight.
However, beyond some critical weight, the runner speed
decreases and so does the power output. The input power
to the system was altered by a change in flow rate and the
height of the inlet pipe among which maximum efficiency
is reported in case of the highest value of flow and height.
The further test with variation in braking force was carried
out at the maximum efficiency setting found from previous
tests. The optimum setting was recorded with the applied
force in between zero and maximum that will just bring the
turbine to rest. This finding relates to the speed of the turbine
and speed of vortex as proposed by Mulligan and Casserly
(2010). In the study, the maximum efficiency of 15.1% was
recorded when the applied braking was 60% of the force just
enough to bring the turbine to rest (Figs. 8, 9).
Numerical studies
The field of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is the sub-
set of computational science and numerical methods con-
cerned with solving the discretized sets of the governing
equations of fluid flow (i.e. the Navier–Stokes equations)
to yield three-dimensional and time-dependent data on a
particular flow field of interest. The primary advantage of
CFD is the ability to quickly generate results at a low cost
which makes it very suitable for optimization (Pulliam and
Zingg 2017). The disadvantage, however, is that specific
simulation requires strict quantitative validation by physi-
cal models prior to being used for design purposes. With
the advent of cheaper computational fluid dynamics codes
and high-speed computing, there has been an increase in
research into new designs for vortex chambers and runners
using CFD models. Figure 10 outlines the results from a
CFD simulation undertaken on a vortex chamber outlining
the flow behaviour and velocity vectors for various depths
(Mulligan et al. 2016a, b).
Wanchat and Suntivarakorn (2012) studied the variation
in basin geometry in order to maintain a stable vortex for
power generation. In this study, a rectangular configuration
of the basin was compared with a cylindrical chamber with
and without induced circulation. Induced circulation was
achieved using a guide plate just before the inlet to vortex
chamber similar to the patent of Brown (1968). The study
showed that the cylindrical basin with induced circulation
was the most suitable configuration to form and sustain a
Water vortex hydropower technology: a state‑of‑the‑art review of developmental trends

Fig. 8  Analytical representation
of the application of momentum
principals on the vortex impel-
ler. (Adapted from Mulligan and
Casserly 2010)

Fig. 9  a Standard impeller arrangement and b impeller arrangement with baffle plates (Wichian and Suntivarakorn 2016)

Fig. 10  CFD simulation undertaken on a vortex chamber outlining the flow behaviour and velocity vectors for various depths. Reproduced with
permission from Mulligan et al. (2016a, b)

13

stable vortex. Following this, Wanchat et al. (2013) per-
formed an experimental and computational study on the
cylindrical basin with induced circulation as before and an
outlet tube placed concentrically in the vortex chamber. In
the study, they also varied the outlet diameter of the vortex
chamber for varying flow rate and vortex head; however,
the study did not draw any conclusions on the effect of the
geometry or hydraulic parameters which would be useful in
the context of GWVHP design.
Dhakal et al. (2015) also performed comparative studies
on cylindrical and conical vortex chambers using CFD and
experimental data. In the study, all the geometric parameters
were maintained constant except the outlet tube geometry
as used in Dhakal et al. (2013). The modification of out-
let tube geometry is shown in Fig. 11. As reported, the top
diameter of the basin was 600 mm and the height of basin
was 850 mm. Geometrical parameters for both basins were
formulated under a similar condition of head and flow. Using
runner having six number of blades, the one seen to be maxi-
mum efficient by Dhakal et al. (2013) at various positions,
power produced was compared in these basins with runner
position adjusted along the vertical axis. The numerical and
experimental study showed that output power and thus the
efficiency is maximum in the conical basin. Experimentally,
maximum efficiency in case of cylindrical basin and conical
basin were 27.74 and 36.84%, respectively.
Shabara et  al. (2015a) studied about  the application
of commercial CFD code ANSYS Fluent to study about
water vortex validation of the model done in Shabara et al.
(2015b). The results presented show that ANSYS Fluent can
be used to model the water vortex system with an error in
acceptable range. However, the study doesn’t provide full
information regarding details of the CFD model.
Gautam et al. (2016) studied the effect on power produc-
tion by coupling multiple runners on the same shaft for basin
formulated by Dhakal et al. (2015). In the study, 3D steady-
state, single-phase numerical simulation of conical basin
with turbine runner in vortex has been done using ANSYS
Fluent followed by experimental study. The researchers
Fig. 11  Cross section of the
basin geometry used by Dhakal
et al. (2015) and used by Dhakal
et al. (2013) in left and right,
respectively
13
A. B. Timilsina et al.
found that by coupling these runners’ efficiency increases.
Experimentally, power produced is 6% more than that
produced by use of single runner for maximum efficiency
condition.
Khan (2016) parametrically studied the cylindrical basin
with stepped inlet using ANSYS CFX. Starting with a refer-
ence geometry, the geometric parameters of basin namely
basin aspect ratio, basin diameter and outlet diameter as well
as the flow parameter, inlet velocity is varied parametrically.
Effect of these parameters on height of water vortex, gain
in tangential velocity of water, air core and velocity com-
ponents (in terms of cylindrical coordinates) are then dis-
cussed and the results are also published in Chattha et al.
(2017). Khan (2016) and Dhakal et al. (2017) have studied
about different runner profiles using ANSYS CFX followed
by experiments. Both of these studies conclude that curved
blade profiles are more efficient than flat blade profile. While
the runner used in Khan (2016) is curved in side view, the
runner used in Dhakal et al. (2017) is curved in top view.
Kueh et al. (2017) also studied about the runner and con-
cluded the same: the runner used is curved in the exit part
when viewed from the side.
Nishi and Inagaki (2017) used ANSYS CFX 15.0, to per-
form three-dimensional unsteady-state flow analysis con-
sidering multiphase flow using the volume of fluid (VOF)
method and hence determined the profile of free surface with
turbine runner in the vortex. Torque, power output and effi-
ciency evaluated from the experimental and computational
results have a good agreement. The rotational speed of run-
ner at maximum efficiency from both studies approached
122 RPM. This speed of runner is maximum rotational speed
among all reported studies.
It is to be noted that the majority of the aforementioned
studies were undertaken for steady-state, single-phase
simulations, and there is no evidence to suggest that model
accuracy optimization and validation was a priority in such
studies. Again, developing on the work of Sarkardeh et al.
2014; Suerich-Gulick et al. 2013 and Škerlavaj et al. (2014),
Mulligan (2015) later undertook several studies on the flow